Chapter 419 Internal Troubles and External Chaos

Time flies, and seven or eight days passed in a flash.

Helian Feng stood in the tent outside the city, looking at the towering walls of Yandu City, his brows furrowed into knots, and his mood became more and more confused.

That day, after he tricked Helian Ji out of the palace, he placed him under house arrest in a secret room in Chiyu Peak, cutting off his contact with the outside world.

As for the other captured imperial brothers, Zou Xu had also "invited" them to a safe place and properly accommodated them as instructed - although it was called accommodation, it was actually no different from imprisonment.

Only after arranging all this did he feel relieved and conspired with Su Qinyao and Xiao Beicheng to start the siege.

At first he was full of confidence, thinking that Fu Yunqing would not be able to withstand his combined tactics.

After all, Xuan Yue was infected with the Dream Tapir Gu, and her newborn child was in danger of death. Fu Yunqing could not watch his wife and child die. He would definitely abandon the city and take his child to southern Xinjiang to find medicine.

By then, Yandu would be leaderless, and he would be able to capture the imperial city without any effort.

But he never expected that Fu Yunqing could be so "cruel". For Xiao Nanyue's entrustment, he would actually abandon his wife and children and defend the imperial city to the death.

We have attacked the city several times in the past few days, but we have suffered heavy casualties. Yesterday, we entered from the north gate, but fell into Fu Yunqing's trap and had to evacuate urgently.

What made him even more anxious was that a few days ago, while their main force was attacking the city, Fu Yunqing actually sent his assassins to go around and burn the food and fodder they had stored outside the city.

The army is now running out of food and it will take some time to send troops to nearby provinces to collect food. The war situation has become passive.

Helian Feng paced back and forth restlessly, his fingertips tapping unconsciously on the abdication edict on the table.

He knew in his heart that he didn't have much time left.

Xiao Nanyue is leading the Xiao family army of 200,000 soldiers and is rushing back day and night. They are elite troops who have been tempered on the battlefield. Once they arrive, there will be a bloody storm.

"We must take over Yandu as soon as possible..."

He muttered to himself, a fierce glint in his eyes.

Only by taking control of Yandu and controlling the military power in the capital will he have the confidence to compete with Xiao Nanyue, otherwise everything will be empty talk.

Su Qinyao's footsteps were heard outside the tent. She lifted the curtain and walked in. Seeing his serious expression, she knew that the attack on the city was not going well. She said softly:

"Feng'er, Xiao Beicheng has received news that Fu Yunqing hasn't shown up in the past few days. I think he's staying at home with his wife and children."

Helian Feng raised his head suddenly: "Is he really so patient?"

"Fu Yunqing may seem careless, but he's actually tougher than anyone else."

Helian Feng was silent for a moment and sighed softly:

"Mother, we can't wait any longer in the current situation. This time, we must burn our boats and cross the river, otherwise, we will be completely defeated!"

…

Overnight, a thousand copies of the abdication edict of the current emperor Helian Ji were printed and distributed within the imperial city.

What's more, some "common people" have been saying that the new emperor's ascension to the throne is destiny, and how can a young boy have the talent to govern the country? The former crown prince Helian Feng is the one destined by heaven.

Outside the Regent's Palace, some "common people" gathered and accused Fu Yunqing of "refusing to recognize the imperial edict, holding the young emperor hostage, and obstructing the legitimate succession to the throne", implying that if the soldiers defending the city continued to resist, they would be "aiding the rebellion and resisting the emperor."

Some wealthy businessmen and gentry in the city who had old ties with the Helian or Su families spread rumors about why Fu Yunqing had military power and why he didn't care about the lives of the people and concealed the fact that food and grass were running out. This caused panic among the people, and even more than 10,000 people surrounded the city gates and put pressure on the garrison to open the city.

There was also chaos inside the palace.

The former Concubine Li Shu, now the Empress Dowager, has sent people to inquire about Helian Ji's whereabouts for several days, but there has been no news.

At first, she could still suppress her anxiety and wait, but now the war outside the city was getting more and more intense, and Fu Mingyuan always prevaricated with excuses like "Your Majesty, please be at ease, Your Majesty, please don't be anxious", and she could no longer bear it.

The other concubines came to Fu Mingyuan every day to ask for an explanation, blocking the Taining Palace completely.

The Second Prince Helian Yu, the Third Prince Helian Chuan, the Fourth Prince Helian Ye, and the Fifth Prince Helian Ting also suddenly disappeared a few days ago. How could their mother not be anxious?

Seeing the Queen Mother and the concubines crying loudly, demanding their sons, the palace maids did not dare to make a noise, but all of them looked frightened.

Taining Palace was originally a place for temporarily handling government affairs, but it was now surrounded by cries and questioning. The eunuchs and guards who came and went held their breath and did not dare to step forward to persuade them.

Fu Mingyuan looked at the scene in front of him with a frown.

Facing these mothers who had lost their children, no matter how many words he said, he could not calm their panic.

"Ladies, please calm down."

Fu Mingyuan said in a deep voice, trying to maintain his composure, "The princes are only temporarily staying elsewhere to avoid disaster. They will be sent back to the palace when the fighting subsides. Right now, the rebels outside the city are eyeing them covetously. Please, ladies, consider the overall situation and refrain from making a commotion and disrupting the morale of the troops."

"Avoid disaster?"

Empress Dowager Li suddenly looked up, her eyes bloodshot. "Master Fu, do you think I and the others are three-year-old children? If you really want to escape from disaster, why didn't you even say a word? Could it be... could it be that the children have met with an accident?"

As soon as these words came out, the crying became even louder. Fu Mingyuan's heart sank, knowing that it was futile to explain further, he could only raise his voice and say:

"Come here, escort the ladies back to their bedrooms to rest. No one is allowed to leave without my order!"

The guards stepped forward to help, but were pushed away by Empress Dowager Li:

"I will not go back! If I cannot see the prince today, I will die in front of Taining Palace!"

The chaos outside the palace intensified, and the news quickly spread to all the palaces. Even the guards on duty could not help but whisper to each other.

Fu Mingyuan felt his scalp tingling as he looked at the out-of-control situation - Helian Feng's army outside the city had not yet broken into it, but the chaos inside the palace was already like a prairie fire. If it continued like this, the palace would probably be in chaos before the enemy attacked.

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